New Arrivals
by TheObscureFluffs
Summary: [sequel to 'Black and White'] When you're Sonic the Hedgehog, very little surprises you. In fact, you come to expect weird or crazy things happening. However, there were still two things that Sonic wasn't prepared for. The first was Knuckles coming home with a puppy. The second was Knuckles coming home with a baby. He wants to keep both. (slightly AU Sonic Boom universe)
1. Chapter 1

_Hmm... figured Knux would've gotten here by now..._

Sonic sighed, bending backwards and awkwardly leaning off of his hammock. They didn't plan on meeting each other, but this was basically Knuckles' home ever since the two started dating.

 _Aw well. Guess I'll wait a bit longer._

Suddenly, a little ball of fur came dashing in, followed by Knuckles.

"Hey, get back here!" the echidna shouted.

The brown puppy he was chasing didn't seem to listen. It kept running around the room, barking loudly, until Knuckles started to tire out.

"Ugh... could... use some... help... here..." he panted.

Sonic didn't understand what was happening, but shrugged and sped after the little dog, catching it in seconds. "Hey there, little guy," he greeted. "I—"

He winced as the puppy licked his nose, causing him to pout in protest. "Man, I had a cool line prepared and everything..."

"Phew, thanks," Knuckles said as he caught his breath. "So I found this little guy all alone... and he doesn't seem to belong to anybody. Can we keep him?"

"Eh?" Sonic asked, shocked by the suddenness of the question. "Geez, Knux, are ya sure? I mean, y'can't pick up every animal that's wound up all alone. Shouldn't you take him to that pet shop or somethin'?"

"But... _look_ at him..." Knuckles replied. "Can we please keep him, _please_?"

He then used the most powerful weapon he had against Sonic: the puppy dog eyes.

The actual puppy also proceeded to give Sonic "the eyes". It was now a 2 on 1 battle.

"A-angh..."

Sonic grimaced. Knuckles was making that face again; he _hated_ that cute face.

He hesitated, trying his best to stay strong, then sighed.

"Oh, fine. We can keep him," he agreed reluctantly.

"Yay!" Knuckles exclaimed happily.

The puppy wriggled out of Sonic's grip and ran over to Knuckles, barking and wagging his tail.

"What should we call him?" Knuckles asked.

"Hmm..." Sonic took a long pause, staring at the little dog and running names through his head.

"How about... Nakkuru?" he suggested, giving Knuckles a small grin. "Or 'Kuru' for short!" 'Nakkuru' was actually the echidna's old name before they started calling him 'Knuckles'.

Knuckles smiled. "I love it!"

He picked up the puppy and hugged it. "So I guess that makes you Knuckles Jr," he said to the little fluffball, chuckling.

Sonic giggled at how excitable Knuckles was, then lightly pet the puppy. "Did ya pick up anything for the little guy?"

Knuckles froze. "Oh, um... it kinda slipped my mind..." he admitted sheepishly.

Sonic laughed. "Gimme a few minutes then!"

He quickly rushed out the door.

While Sonic was gone, Knuckles and Kuru went outside and ran around for a bit.

After a while, like he promised, the blue hedgehog sped back to the two, holding a few plastic bags. "How's this?"

He sat down on the sand and smiled, picking up a small ball out of one of the bags and tossing it.

Kuru chased after ball, his little legs a blur as he ran as fast as he could. He caught the ball in his mouth and brought it back to Sonic, tail wagging.

"Heh, nice catch!" Sonic exclaimed, taking the ball back. He looked over at Knuckles and tilted his head. "Where'd ya find him? He looks pretty dirty..."

"I found him in the trash," Knuckles explained. "Poor little guy was trying to find food in there, I think."

"We should probably give him a bath," Sonic said. "Maybe fill a bucket with water and put him in there. I think I have special soap for dogs in here somewhere." He dug through the bags to look for it.

"Okay," Knuckles replied. "Follow me, Kuru!"

Knuckles and Kuru ran off in search of a bucket.

Shortly, they came back with one, and Knuckles had already filled it with water. "Does this work?" he asked Sonic.

Sonic nodded. "Alright!" He gripped the bucket gently. "Put him in, but you might have to hold him if he starts movin' around..." he warned.

"'Kay!" Knuckles picked up Kuru and gently lowered him into the bucket. Kuru started wriggling around, splashing the water. Within a few seconds, Knuckles was soaked.

Sonic couldn't help laughing, but quickly focused on the task at hand and started washing Kuru.

"Don't worry, little guy," Knuckles said to Kuru, "this won't take too long! We just need to get you all cleaned up."

Soon enough, Sonic finished cleaning Kuru and lifted him out of the bucket. "Alright, shake it off, bud."

He ran inside his shack, then came out carrying a large towel. "I got someone else to deal with," he chimed, heading over to Knuckles and slowly drying him off.

"Thanks, Sonic," Knuckles said with a laugh.

Kuru shook the water off his fur, then barked happily.

Sonic glanced over. "Oh, you want attention too, huh?" He smirked and lifted Kuru into his arms, giving him a rough scratching. "As long as your master Knuckles doesn't get jealous!"

Kuru wagged his tail happily, Knuckles giggling at the sight.

Sonic tilted his head over to the bag. "I got a bunch of other stuff we'll have to set up for him too. Hopefully he won't cause too much chaos runnin' around."

"Don't worry, I'll make sure he behaves," Knuckles replied with a wink.

"Psh, yeah right!" Sonic said. "You're a troublemaker too!" he teased, promptly sticking his tongue out.

"Oh yeah?" Knuckles crossed his arms, smirking. "Well you aren't so innocent yourself."

Sonic knew where this was going and didn't mind one bit. "I dunno what you're talking about!"

"Oh, I'm sure you do," Knuckles replied playfully.

"Do not!" Sonic chimed back, picking up Kuru and holding him to his chest. "See? Kuru's even on my side! He believes me!"

Kuru glanced at Sonic, tilting his head.

"I don't think he does," Knuckles said with a laugh.

"Shh, of course he does!" Sonic argued. He held the puppy up to Knuckles' face. "That's the face of cold hard truth right there!"

"Hey, who's side are you on?" Knuckles asked Kuru, frowning.

Kuru barked in reply.

"That's pup-talk for 'Sonic's side'," Sonic told Knuckles with a grin.

Knuckles huffed. "I'm disappointed in you, Kuru."

Kuru's ears drooped. He let out a small whine.

Knuckles sighed in defeat. "Aw man, I just can't be mad at you..."

Kuru stretched his head towards Knuckles and started licking his face.

"H-hey!" Knuckles protested with a laugh.

"Good boy!" Sonic cheered, pressing the pup further against Knuckles. "Get 'im!"

Knuckles was soon smothered in puppy kisses.

"Okay, okay, you win!" he exclaimed.

"Yes!" Sonic took the puppy back into his arms. "Victory is sweet!"

"Yeah, well, enjoy it while you can," Knuckles replied with a smirk. "I'll make sure Kuru takes my side next time." He winked.

"Sure, if you say so," Sonic said, waving a hand dismissively. He then looked up at the sky. "Think it's about time to get the little guy to bed? It's pretty late..."

"Yeah, you're right," Knuckles replied reluctantly.

Kuru yawned, and his eyelids drooped.

Sonic chuckled. "Don't worry, Knux, you'll have plenty of time to play with 'im in the mornin'."

He picked up the bags and took them inside (returning the ball to the bag too before he forgot about it), then set them on the floor and searched through it.

"I dunno how big he's gonna get, so I got a medium-sized one," he said, pulling out a dog-bed for Knuckles to see.

They put Kuru in the bed.

"Goodnight," Knuckles said, petting the puppy's head. "See ya tomorrow!"

Kuru yawned again. Then he spun around in a circle before falling fast asleep.

"I wonder why dogs do that..." Knuckles mused.

"I dunno. Fun?" Sonic suggested. To test, he curled into a spindash and rolled onto the bed, making small circles on his side of the mattress.

Knuckles giggled a bit. He didn't say it out loud, but he thought Sonic looked rather silly doing that.

He then got onto the bed and snuggled up next to Sonic.

Sonic didn't quite snuggle back, but he blushed and clearly enjoyed Knuckles' gesture, just as he always did. "Night..."

"Night." Knuckles soon fell fast asleep.

Sometime later, Kuru opened his eyes. Good, both of his new masters were asleep. He'd been waiting for this moment. He crawled out of his bed and went over to where Sonic and Knuckles were sleeping. He jumped onto the bed, made circles once again, and then went to sleep, for real this time.

Sonic shifted a little, feeling the puppy against him. "M-mm?" He opened his eyes and looked down, then lightly shook Knuckles. "Hey, Knux, we got a visitor."

"Hm?" Knuckles' eyes fluttered open.

"Oh, hey Kuru," he said with a chuckle.

Kuru didn't respond since he was already asleep.

Sonic raised a brow. "Want me to put him back in his bed?"

Knuckles gazed at the sleeping fluffball that was curled up between them.

"Nah," he replied. "He looks cozy here." He smiled.

"Softie," Sonic teased, sticking his tongue out. He paused, then looked back down at the dog. "K-Knux..."

He pretended to look heartbroken. "I thought you said nothing would ever come between us?"

Knuckles' eyebrows shot up. "Wh-wha? What are you talking abou—oh." He laughed. "Ya got me for a second there."

Sonic grinned. "Hehe, I'm sorry." No he wasn't.

Knuckles yawned. "Well, I think we should get some sleep."

"Right." The blue hedgehog yawned too, though tried to keep quiet so not to wake Kuru up. "Niiiight again..." He slowly drifted off.

The next morning, Knuckles was suddenly awoken by slobbery puppy kisses.

"Ugh... just five more minutes, Kuru..." he mumbled.

Sonic heard his mumbling and woke up slowly. "Hm?"

He smirked at the sight. "Remember, Knux; you asked for this!"

Knuckles just wordlessly grumbled in reply.

Kuru barked victoriously, wagging his tail.

"Alright, up," Sonic told him, picking Kuru up and getting off the bed to give Knuckles a bit of space and time.

Knuckles groaned as he practically rolled himself out of the bed.

Sonic walked around the bed to Knuckles, then set Kuru down and held his arms out. "Need a wake-up kiss?" he asked, blushing slightly.

Knuckles smiled. "Sure."

Sonic pulled Knuckles up into a sitting position and kissed him lightly on the lips. "Heh, awake yet?" he asked.

"Yeah, thanks." Knuckles stretched and yawned.

"Any time!" Sonic said, sitting Kuru on his lap and scratching the puppy behind the ears.

"So what should we do today?" Knuckles asked.

"I dunno. What do people with dogs do?" Sonic asked, staring down at Kuru. "Geez, Amy's gonna go nuts when she sees this little guy..."

"Oooh, we could play catch with him!" Knuckles suggested.

"That could work!" Sonic reached into one of the bags sitting in the doorway and pulled out a small frisbee. "Wanna play, Kuru? I bet only the coolest dog in the world could catch this!"

Kuru barked in approval, his tail wagging.

"Alright! Let's go then!" Sonic placed Kuru down, then sped outside and gave the frisbee a solid throw. "Fetch!"

Kuru ran after the frisbee, tongue sticking out as he ran on his little legs. He jumped up and tried to grab the frisbee in midair, but ended up face-planting instead. He didn't seem discouraged, however. Instead, he got back up, shook himself off, and went over to where the frisbee had landed. He picked up the toy in his mouth and trotted back over to Sonic and Knuckles.

"Good boy!" said Knuckles.

Sonic knelt down and ruffled up Kuru's fur, then grabbed the frisbee from him. "Let's try this again, huh?" he suggested.

He threw the frisbee, but a little more gently this time. It was successfully caught this time.

Just not by Kuru.

Sonic blinked, looking ahead.

"Sticks, drop it," Amy said with a small smile, patting her friend on the back. Sticks coughed the disc-like object out of her mouth, then glared at Amy. "There, but if it comes after me again, I'll do a lot worse!"

"Hey, Sticks. Hey, Amy," Sonic greeted, waving a hand.

Kuru ran over to the frisbee and picked it back up.

"Hey guys!" Knuckles greeted. "What's up?"

"Not much," Amy said. "We just thought we'd stop by!"

"Thanks for the visit!" Sonic exclaimed. "We were just trainin' Kuru over here."

"Kuru?" she inquired. She pointed at the puppy. "Him?"

"Yup!" Sonic glanced over at Knuckles. " _Someone_ came home yesterday and wouldn't let up 'til I said we could keep him."

Knuckles grinned. Kuru ran over to him and dropped the frisbee at his feet. Knuckles picked it up and threw it.

"Go get it, boy!" he said.

Kuru didn't hesitate in running after it.

"He's such a little cutie!" Amy chimed, almost squealing a bit.

Sonic nodded. "Yeah. Dunno who'd let the poor pup out on his own, but he's with us now, so I guess it doesn't matter."

Kuru ran back to Knuckles with the frisbee.

"Good boy!" Knuckles said again, taking the slobber-covered frisbee from him.

Amy picked up Kuru and giggled, gently scratching his ears. "Who's-a good wittle puppy? _You are_!" She touched her nose to his, admiring how adorable he was.

Sonic smirked, amused at how affectionate she was with his and Knuckles' dog.

Kuru wagged his tail as he proceeded to smother Amy in puppy kisses. Knuckles couldn't help giggling.

"Ahh, hey!" Amy said, mixed between disgust at the slobbery licking and delight at how cute it was that he was licking her.

"Amy, look out! It's eating your face!" Sticks warned, pointing her boomerang at the puppy.

Sonic chuckled, leaning against Knuckles slightly. "These are the friends we're stuck with, Knux," he joked.

"I wouldn't have it any other way," Knuckles replied.

"Me neither," Sonic agreed. "Looks like we'll have someone to watch the pup whenever we go out though."

Knuckles nodded, watching as Amy was smitten with a case of puppy love.

"...Speakin' of which, it's been a while, huh?" Sonic asked. "Since we went on a date n' all."

"Yeah, it has..." Knuckles realized.

Sonic placed his hands behind his head and looked back at Kuru. "We'll have to fix that soon," he muttered, though blushing slightly at the realization of what he was saying.

"Yeah, we will," Knuckles said with a wink.

Sonic smiled, nudging Knuckles slightly. "It's a date."

He then couldn't help asking, "So, you're not gonna let him sleep in our bed all the time, are ya? If he gets to be a big dog, we'll never get any sleep."

Knuckles pouted. "I guess you're right..."

"Aww, don't be like that!" Sonic said with a giggle. " I know I'm not as fuzzy, but you can just hold me instead."

Knuckles blushed, but he smiled.

Amy then walked over to the two and handed Kuru back. "Ugh, now I need a bath," she groaned, though giggling a little.

Sonic shrugged. "It's part of his charm," he argued jokingly, holding Kuru with one arm and lightly scratching his stomach with the other.

Knuckles patted Kuru on the head. "Who's a good boy," he cooed, " _you are_!"

Sticks walked up and stared at the dog. "I don't trust it. It's too fuzzy and adorable..."

"Don't worry, Sticks, I'm sure he's fine," Sonic assured, smirking and patting Kuru too.

Kuru stared back at Sticks for a moment, then licked her face.

Sticks jumped back, pointing her boomerang at the puppy. "It got me! It's evil!"

She paused for a moment, then touched where she'd been licked. "...Okay, that wasn't too bad, I guess."

Kuru barked happily.

"Anyway, Sticks and I should probably get going," Amy said, waving a bit. "You two have fun, okay?" She lightly took Sticks' hand and walked off.

"Bye!" Knuckles called. "Say 'bye', Kuru!" He gently grabbed Kuru's paw and made him 'wave' goodbye.

Sonic crossed his arms and looked back at Knuckles. "I'll set up his food and water dishes," he said, walking back inside.

Knuckles and Kuru went inside as well, Kuru being eager to finally have some real food.

Sonic pulled the dishes out of the bag and placed them down on the floor, then showed Knuckles various small bags of dog food. "I didn't know what he'd like, so I just grabbed at random," he explained, ripping one of the bags open and pouring it into the food dish. "I guess we'll have to get him a collar soon too..."

Kuru ran over to the food dish and happily began to eat.

"Wow, you sure were hungry!" Knuckles said.

"Makes sense. Who knows what the poor guy's been eatin' before ya found him..." Sonic said with a frown, gently stroking Kuru's fur.

"Well, he's safe now," Knuckles replied. "Right?"

Sonic stood up and turned to him. "A'course. He's got a great guy like you lookin' after him after all!" he answered, giving Knuckles a small grin.

Knuckles smiled at Sonic, blushing. "Th-thanks..."

Just then, Kuru finished his meal. He licked his chops and looked up at his masters, tail wagging.

"Alright, so, it's still a little early for a date. What do you wanna do until then?" Sonic asked, reaching over and holding Knuckles' hand.

Knuckles blushed again. "W-we could cuddle," he suggested. Even though they'd done this many times, he was still a bit shy about asking.

Sonic blushed too. "R-right now?"

"W-well, I mean... i-if you don't want to..." Knuckled replied, embarrassed.

"Of course I do!" Sonic blurted out, always quick to react when it seemed like Knuckles was saying something self-consciously. His blush deepened at his quick response, but he tried to play it cool and sat down on the bed, patting the spot next to him.

Knuckles grinned, sitting down next to Sonic. He wrapped an arm around the hedgehog and snuggled close to him. Sonic smiled softly, leaning against Knuckles and letting out a soft 'mmm' sound to show that he approved. Knuckles gave him a light kiss on the cheek.


	2. Chapter 2

A while passed since the two had gotten the dog. Sonic got him a collar and Knuckles always took him out for walks when he needed to.

What they probably didn't expect was that they'd get another arrival not too much later.

 _I guess Knuckles is probably still walking Kuru. He's taking a while though,_ Sonic thought. However, then again, _everything_ took too long for him, so he figured it was nothing.

When Knuckles finally got back, he had brought someone extra with him. A baby Mobian cat, to be precise.

"Hey, um... I found this baby girl abandoned, and um..." Knuckles wasn't even sure what to say.

Sonic's eyes went wide as he glanced over. "You...you didn't..." Well, _this_ seemed familiar.

"I did..." Knuckles replied sheepishly. "But look at her; she's so cute and all alone... _plus_ , she's purple! And red and blue make purple, right? So... maybe we're supposed to take care of her?"

He wasn't sure if he was making any sense, but he had to try.

Sonic stood up from his position and walked over, gazing down at the baby wrapped in a little bundle. She stared up at him, her eyes a gentle yellow. It was true; she was a soft lavender color that turned purple at places. Sonic wouldn't say it out loud, but she was certainly cute.

"I-I dunno, Knux. I know we talked about kids, but... I mean, we don't even know how to take care of one!" He wasn't entirely sure of his answer. Obviously, they didn't know the advanced stuff, but the basics ran true; babies needed lots of sleep, food, and attention.

"We can learn how!" Knuckles replied. "Come on, we can't just leave her all alone! Can we keep her, _please_?"

Knuckles then pulled the puppy dog eyes. So did Kuru. Heck, even the baby was giving Sonic that face. It was 1 against 3 this time around.

Sonic staggered backwards at the assault, immediately turning nervous. "K-Knux, Kuru... n-ngh..." _Why me...?_

He struggled to keep what little composure he had left, then plopped down on the floor. "Ugh, _alright_! We can keep her, just... stop doing that!" he shouted.

Knuckles smiled victoriously. Kuru wagged his tail.

"So what should we call her?" Knuckles asked.

Sonic stood back up and stared at the baby. "Ah, hmm..." He smiled, placing his finger on the cat's nose and lightly stroking it to be playful with her. "Well, what would _you_ like to be named, kitty cat?"

The baby said nothing, obviously, but the light stroking Sonic was doing caused her to gasp slightly. She pushed his finger away and scrunched her nose. "A-ah... ah!"

She bent her head down slightly, then sneezed, "ACHOO!"

Shockingly, a stream of fire shot from her mouth, setting the blanket she was wrapped in ablaze!

Knuckles quickly dropped the blanket and stomped the fire out. He stared for a moment at the child in his arms.

"I know, we'll call her Blaze!"

Sonic chuckled nervously. "IIII think that's a pretty accurate name!"

Blaze giggled, seeming to enjoy the name they gave her. Though, she looked down at the put-out fire and frowned, seeming apologetic.

"Hey, it's alright," Sonic said softly, lightly scratching the cat's tummy. "Kinda my fault anyways."

He then glanced up to Knuckles and smirked. "You're lucky I love you."

Knuckles blushed. "I love you too."

He gently scratched Blaze's little head. "And I love you too," he cooed.

Kuru barked.

"And I love _you_ too!" Knuckles said to him, chuckling lightly.

Sonic looked around his house. _Geez, this house was really only big enough for one. Now I've got Knuckles, Kuru, and Blaze here..._ He left the thought unspoken and stared back at Blaze. "I guess we've gotta go get a lotta stuff for her, huh?" he asked.

"Yeah, I guess so," Knuckles replied. "And we'll have to make sure it's all fireproof!"

Sonic nodded, then lightly shook Blaze's hand. "She's gonna give Egghead a real challenge when she gets older though!" he exclaimed. "Heh, bet she'll set his stache on fire."

Knuckles laughed. "I'd _love_ to see that!"

Sonic nodded in agreement, then looked down at Kuru. "They'll let pets into stores, right? We could just go in with Kuru and see what Blaze likes," he suggested.

"Sounds good to me!" said Knuckles.

"Cool!" Sonic reached into Kuru's box of stuff, then pulled out a leash and attached it to Kuru's collar. "Sorry, bud," he said with a sheepish smile. "I'd hate bein' leashed too."

He looked up at Knuckles. "You gonna carry her the whole time?" he asked.

"Yeah, I think I will," Knuckles replied. "She can't walk yet, so someone's gotta carry her."

Blaze smiled, cuddling into Knuckles' chest.

"Shall we?" Sonic asked, walking out with Kuru.

Knuckles grinned. "After you!"

The four went into the village together and headed into the store. Sonic felt slightly embarrassed about searching for baby stuff.

"Need any help?" the owner asked. Sonic shook his head. "Naw, we're alright."

Knuckles tried to focus on the shopping, but he was too excited by the fact that he was finally going to be a father. Sure, the baby might not've be related to him or Sonic by blood, but he could already feel himself forming a bond with Blaze.

Sonic seemed to sense his excitement and looked back at him. "Careful, Knux. You might hurt yourself if that smile gets any bigger." He giggled, lightly poking Knuckles' cheek.

Knuckles giggled too. "I'm just so excited!"

Sonic didn't quite understand at first, but the situation quickly caught up with him. "Oh..." He smiled softly. "I-I guess she _is_ kind of our daughter, huh?"

Knuckles nodded, still grinning. He gently scratched Blaze under her chin, and her tail swished as she let out a loud purr. She giggled, lightly holding onto Knuckles' hand.

"Should we get her some clothes too?" Sonic asked as he perused through all the bottles and pacifiers.

"Yeah, we should!" Knuckles replied. "Too bad they don't make fireproof clothes..."

"I wouldn't worry too much," Sonic said. "She's _our_ daughter after all! She'll learn to control it in no time!"

 _"Our daughter."_ Knuckles loved the sound of those words. "Okay then! Let's find Blaze some clothes!"

Sonic grabbed an item box to stuff their items into, then snatched up a few things and moved on. "So, girly or not-so-girly?"

He picked up a small dress, then showed it to Blaze. Personally, he found it pretty unappealing, but then again, it's not like he'd have to wear it, though a small bit of disgust still showed on his face. Blaze stared at it, then let out a cute grunting noise and turned her head away.

"Not-so-girly it is!" Sonic exclaimed, returning the dress to its original spot and looking through the clothes again.

Knuckles spotted Kuru sniffing at a piece of clothing.

"Hmm, are you suggesting this one?" he asked jokingly.

Sonic looked down at it. He had to admit, it looked pretty cool. "Let's give it a shot."

He picked it up, then showed it to Blaze. "How's this one, kiddo?"

Blaze quickly lit up, pulling the fabric to her face and snuggling into it, letting out a soft purring noise.

"We've got a winner!" Sonic cheered, looking down at Kuru. "Nice job."

Kuru wagged his tail proudly.

"Good boy!" Knuckles said. "I guess we know what kind of things to look for now."

Sonic nodded. Eventually, they collected everything they needed, though it had taken a little longer than Sonic liked. Knuckles also had to hand over Blaze as, being the larger of the two, he was able to carry more stuff.

Once they got back home, Sonic sat down on his hammock, placing Blaze on his lap and looking over at Knuckles. "Just drop 'em anywhere," he said, pointing at all the bags the echidna had to carry. "Heh, sorry that ya had to carry most of it though!" He lifted up the single plastic bag he was holding for emphasis.

Knuckles grunted as he put the stuff down. He was a little annoyed, but be brushed it off. He and Kuru went over to Sonic's hammock.

"I don't think we've introduced you two," Knuckles said to Kuru and Blaze. He picked up Kuru and held him close to Blaze.

"Kuru, this is Blaze. Blaze, Kuru."

Kuru began to curiously sniff the baby cat in front of him.

Blaze giggled, then pet Kuru's head.

Sonic meanwhile noticed Knuckles' mild annoyance from before and pouted. "Hey, c'mon, I said I was sorry! You were the only one who could carry all that stuff!" He snuck a lip-kiss to the echidna since he was close enough.

Knuckles' cheeks grew warm. "Well, I guess a kiss _does_ make it better..." He winked.

"Good!" Sonic said with a smirk. He then turned his attention to Blaze and lightly scratched her fur. "We should probably get her cleaned up and fed. We haven't done either since she got here."

"Oh, right!" Knuckles replied. "What do we feed her, exactly?"

"I bought some baby food and 'baby formula', whatever that is," Sonic said, digging into the bag next to him and pulling out both.

"So which one do we give her?" Knuckles wondered.

"I guess it doesn't matter," Sonic figured. Forgetting about the high-chair he'd bought, he cradled Blaze with one arm and popped one container of baby food open. "Pass me a spoon," he told Knuckles.

Knuckles grabbed a spoon and handed it to him.

"Alright, Blaze, open up," Sonic muttered as he scooped up a bit of baby food and held it up to her mouth. Blaze sniffed it, but scoffed at the smell and hit the spoon, sending its contents onto Sonic's face.

He winced, then gazed down at Blaze, who shifted between concern and giggling. Sonic tried to be angry, but laughed along with her anyway.

"I guess she doesn't like it," Knuckles commented, chuckling lightly.

Sonic gave a fake glare at the echidna, then closed the container back up and wiped the baby food from his cheek. "Alright, let's somethin' else then."

After trying out a few different containers, Blaze finally took to one of the flavors and ate without complaint. Sonic looked over at Knuckles and smirked. "Next time, _you're_ feeding her," he said jokingly. He honestly couldn't blame her, as he could be picky too from time to time, and he'd _certainly_ dealt with worse.

Just then, Kuru walked over to them and started sniffing at Blaze's food.

"No, Kuru!" Knuckles said sternly, but gently.

Kuru heard him and backed away.

"We already have one little babe to take care of; we don't need two," Sonic explained, trying to fake seriousness but laughing again.

"Kuru, you've got your own food," Knuckles said, gesturing to the food bowls.

Kuru, defeated, went over to his food dish and began to eat.

Once Blaze was fed, it was time to give her a bath. The two figured the bucket technique would work again, but any attempt to get Blaze dipped into the water caused her to cling to Sonic as much as she could while also letting out a small whine.

"Hm... well, _this_ isn't working," Sonic said with a frown, trying to figure out what he could do. He wouldn't want to go into that bucket if he was Blaze either, but they needed to get her bathed.

"I guess she doesn't like water," Knuckles mused. It did kind of make sense since Blaze had fire powers, but it also made things much more difficult.

"No worries. I got this," Sonic assured. He got a small rag, then soaked it with water and body wash. "Blaaaze," he chimed, getting the cat's attention. "How's this?"

Blaze grabbed it slightly as he held it out to her, then relaxed as he ran it through her fur.

Sonic smiled. "There we go."

"Oh, that works!" Knuckles said.

Sonic chuckled. "Hold still, Blaze!" he said, the cat squirming and giggling as he reached her tummy. "Knux, we have a struggler! Someone doesn't like being a clean kitty!"

Knuckles laughed lightly. "Here."

He gently held onto Blaze to keep her from squirming too much. "Hold still, Blaze. You'll be clean soon!"

Blaze calmed down a little, but seemed ticklish there. Still, it didn't take long for Sonic to finish up and dry her.

"How about daddy Knuckles puts your clothes on?" Sonic asked with a smile. "He deserves a bit of a challenge too, huh?"

Blaze giggled.

"Uh, okay." Knuckles wasn't entirely sure what he was doing, but he'd try.

He grabbed one of Blaze's outfits and started trying to put it on her.

Blaze was fairly cooperative, and with a little help from Sonic, she was fully clothed and looking comfortable in her outfit.

Sonic smiled, gently holding her hands in his own. "Who knew Kuru had such a good sense of fashion, huh?"

"Yeah, she looks great!" Knuckles said with a grin.

Kuru ran over to them, having heard his name. He sniffed at Blaze, then gave her a big puppy kiss.

Blaze laughed at the kiss, sticking her tongue out and licking the puppy back.

The two played for a while until Sonic had set the crib up, at which point he scooped Blaze into his arms and carried her over. She seemed unsure about what was happening, but quickly started pouting once Sonic tried to get a blanket around her. "Ah, c'mon, Blaze. It's time for bed," he tried to argue. He stared over at Knuckles for 'help', not wanting to conquer that adorable face by himself.

Knuckles walked up to them.

"Now, Blaze," he said, "we all need to get some sleep. You and Kuru can play more tomorrow."

He gave her a light goodnight kiss on the head.

Blaze giggled at the kiss, but still pouted. Sonic tucked her in, then went over to his bed and flopped onto it. "And I guess Kuru still doesn't want to sleep in his own bed?"

As if in answer, Kuru jumped onto the bed next to Sonic.

"Nope," Knuckles laughed.

"Ahhh, well, ya never slept in your own bed anyway," Sonic said with a small sigh, raising a hand out to Knuckles to gesture him to come too.

However, a wailing sound quickly came from the crib as Blaze began to cry, not liking being separated from her fathers.

"Aw, Blaze wants to sleep here too!" Knuckles said.

"Knuuux, you know that she'll never leave if we let her sleep with us tonight," Sonic argued, pointing at Kuru for an example.

"But she's so lonely!" Knuckles looked at Blaze sadly, then looked back at Sonic pleadingly. " _Plus_ , she's probably scared after being abandoned," he pointed out.

"A-ah..." Sonic rolled over. "Don't stare at me like that."

" _Please_ let her sleep with us," Knuckles said, "at least until she feels safe. Please?"

Sonic's ears flopped down. "Knuuux." He paused, then sighed and got up, walking over to the crib. "Alright, Blaze. Up," he told her, reaching in and pulling her out. She smiled up at him, cooing as she snuggled against his fur.

"You're lucky you're cute," the blue hedgehog murmured, lightly scratching her behind her ears. He sat back down on the bed, then laid back and allowed Blaze to rest on his stomach, covering her up to her neck with his blanket. "How's this?" he asked Knuckles, raising a brow and trying to be serious, though he couldn't help a smile at the adorable puppy and baby cat on the bed with them.

Knuckles smiled. "She looks cozy," he said.

He climbed into bed and snuggled next to his family.

 _My family._ He grinned at that thought.

"Yeah, she does..." Sonic glanced over at Knuckles, then smiled softly and slowly fell asleep, Blaze following suit.

Knuckles smiled at how cute the two looked. Then, he too soon fell asleep, Kuru following suit.


End file.
